FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Just inside the Twins' clubhouse at Hammond Stadium, about a half-dozen lockers down and to the left as one walks in, is a little slice of serenity.

There is no incense burning or nature sounds playing. But this is the home area for Joe Benson, former hothead turned poised young man.

"I've been known to struggle a little bit with the mental part of the game," Benson said. "I'd like to think I've cleaned most of that up."

The Twins would like to think so, too. Benson has an awful lot of talent. In last year's training camp, he put on a show in center field. He tracked down everything and came close to coming north with the team. But Denard Span and Ben Revere were in his way so he was sent to Rochester.

And then the troubles started.

"Yeah, that's a great way to put it," Benson said. "You know, I think I got in my own head a little bit last year."

History tells us that's a bad place to be.

"But after last summer, I think that's the end of it," he added. "You're probably not going to hear anything to do with me and the mental part of baseball again."

If so, he'll become a Minnesota Twin sooner rather than later. Benson can play. And after an awful, miserable, discouraging 2012 season during which he skidded down the minor league ladder all the way to A-ball, he's back healthy and with a fresh attitude.

"I think he's shown some signs of that," said general manager Terry Ryan. "He's going about his business pretty good.

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He's always had ability. Sometimes he's had to funnel some of that energy and so forth in different directions."

Like the time he got angry with himself during a game and punched a fence near the dugout. Problem was there was a metal stanchion right where his fist landed. That resulted in a broken hand.

"That was just immaturity," Benson explained. "It was just in a game. I'd of rather it had been in a drunken bar fight. I wouldn't get so many questions about it."

Well, there's still time, but I'd advise against it.

Benson started slowly in Rochester in 2012 and was demoted to Double-A New Britain. There he suffered a hand injury -- the hamate bone just sort of wore out and fractured. After surgery and rehab he was sent to Single-A Fort Myers. He worked his way back up to Double A, but then his knee went screwy and needed surgery in August. He was done for the year.

"It's real tough to stop the avalanche when it starts," Benson said. "I don't see myself hitting a lower low than that. I'm coming from a background where athletics is one thing I've always succeeded in.

"Just going into the year after having my call-up in 2011, then a strong showing in camp, I had my expectations pretty high. It was tough. There were some mornings where the motivation wasn't the same as it was in the spring or the beginning of the season. But the game is a daily grind. Just taking a step back, especially after the hamate broke, really let me reflect on some things. You've got to live in the present. You can't change the past."

"He had a difficult go," Ryan said. "Now he's down here and is trying to win a job and it is evident. He's going about it the right way."

Benson, who turns 25 in a couple of days, has made a positive impression here in camp. The center field job is open, although Aaron Hicks has established himself as the front-runner. If nothing else, Benson wants to establish that he's wiped the slate clean.

"Just from being with the Twins since 2006 and having so many talks with Terry, I definitely know he's in my corner," Benson said. "He believes in my skill set. And that's kind of given me the confidence. I've never lost track of what my goals were."

When you can't get any lower, when you can't get down any deeper, there's only one direction in which to go. And Benson is headed that way. That's a good thing for all concerned.